Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Today Arizona turns 100 years old. As it turns out, I am a fourth generation Arizonan; my great grandpa was born in Arizona Territory in 1908, four years before Taft granted us statehood. I have never felt a draw to live in another state. I love it here. Most of the year is beautiful weather and the landscape is hugely varied; from sparse desert to lush forest, in only a few hours' travel. This is the place for me! Keep on rockin', AZ!

Friday, February 10, 2012

I don't think I mentioned that I got a Kindle for my birthday. Umm...did I even mention my birthday? Drat. Well, it was on November 13th, which happened a few months ago. I tend to be a day late and a buck short. Anyway! Kindle! I was incredibly excited to receive it! I got the base model, so there aren't many "bells and whistles" like internet access, but I adore it. At first I felt slightly guilty for turning my back on the romanticism that comes with that new-book-smell, opening virgin pages, knowing my eyes were the first to browse the words, but likely not the last, the excitement that comes with sharing a book. And I can still have that experience, if I have a sentimental reason for owning a particular book. However, the Kindle kicks ass in many ways, and my sentimental leanings have been drowned out by the very cool features of the Kindle. The screen isn't like a typical electronic back-lit gadget; the screen is E Ink, which means it looks JUST LIKE the page of a book, ink on paper, with no back lighting. My absolute favorite thing is the dictionary; all I have to do is put my cursor in front of the mystery word and BOOM! The definition is displayed at the top of the page and I know the meaning of what would have otherwise remained a mystery! My vocabulary is preening as of late. In the past, I would have just allowed the word to slip through the cracks due to laziness. Sometimes I even look up words I already know to get a more clear understanding. This feature alone has kept me fawning over the Kindle. There are some other things, like the ability to rent a library book, or hopping online and owning a book in less than a minute, that are pretty excellent. Some other capabilities are the highlighting feature, and the notes feature, which allow the reader to highlight passages they find worthy of highlighting, or making notes about a particular passage. And the option to choose a text size is excellent, considering I just went to an optometrist and discovered that I'll be needing to wear glasses. So sophisticated, wearing my glasses and reading my Kindle. The only real downside is (and forgive me for being a whiner) when I shut off the Kindle, a freaking ad appears on the screen (like 50% off yoga, or shop at [store name] for good deals). I don't know if I've mentioned my unbridled hatred for pushy and blatant advertising, but that's one thing that irritates me to the core. All in all, that tiny gripe doesn't stand up against the pros that this lovely little reading machine has given me. Happy reading, from one bookworm to another! :D

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About Me

It slices! It dices! And it makes French fries three different ways! I'm a human and I do human things. I live in Phoenix, AZ with my grumpy old man Richard and our cat, Jari and our dogs, Dakota (a Shiba Inu), Menka, an adorable, neurotic, small mutt, and Rosie the best aggressively attention seeking lovebug around.
I started this blog because I enjoy writing. It shall be a tale of my wobbliness and chasing-parked-cars attempts at staying afloat and maybe surprising myself from time to time.
I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis in 2006 and I'm living with it. That being said, you will become very comfortable talking about poop and other such indecencies. Consider it a growing experience.
I also have a LOT of family; I'm the oldest of five kids. One side of my family are brazen hill billies and the other side are city slickers. This has melded me into quite the little oddball, but I sure get by alright.